That was unbelievable and amazing to watch!!!! It ain't over till it's over….. keep fighting.

LOVE it. what a day for ncsu sports. go pack!

Don't sleep on the Sweep Mr. Gee! Duke bullpen wishing the never walked into the Doak baby!

Eli Serrano III's two-run, walk-off homer capped off a six-run rally in the bottom of the ninth to power the Wolfpack to a 9-8 comeback victory over No. 9 Duke on Saturday afternoon at Doak Field at Dail Park.

NC State (15-6, 5-3 ACC) entered the bottom of the ninth facing an 8-3 deficit. Brandon Butterworth opened the inning with a walk before Noah Soles was hit by a pitch to put two runners on with nobody out. An error on a one-out fielder's choice grounder to second base from Josh Hogue allowed Butterworth to score, trimming the deficit to 8-4.

Garrett Pennington then crushed a three-run homer to left field to make it a one-run game at 8-7. Pennington's three-run shot was his second homer in as many at-bats, blasting a solo shot in the eighth inning.

After a groundout made it two outs in the inning, Jacob Cozart kept the rally alive with a single to right field. Andrew Shaffner then entered as a pinch runner to represent the tying run on first base. Serrano III stepped into the batter's box and battled back from a 1-2 count to bring the count full at 3-2. He then unloaded on the 3-2 offering from Duke closer Charlie Beilenson to crush a two-run shot down the right-field line.

Serrano III's walk-off homer marked NC State's third walk-off victory of the season. It was the Wolfpack's first time overcoming a multi-run deficit in the ninth inning for a win since a 6-5 comeback victory over No. 11 Louisville this past season.

Duke (16-7, 3-5 ACC) built a 4-0 lead before Soles' two-run home run in the bottom of the fifth cut the Pack's deficit to 4-2. The Blue Devils then expanded their lead to a game-high six runs behind Logan Bravo's two-RBI single in the sixth and AJ Gracia's two-run homer in the eighth.

NC State relievers Win Scott, Heath Andrews and Derrick Smith kept the Wolfpack within striking distance before the Pack's decisive six-run frame in the ninth. Smith earned the win after tossing a scoreless ninth, needing just seven pitches to retire all three Duke batters in order.

Beilenson (0-2) suffered the loss for Duke after allowing seven runs (four earned) in 1.2 innings pitched.

Pennington tied a career-high with four RBI and notched the second two-homer game of his career in Saturday's comeback. Cozart, Pennington and Serrano III each logged multi-hit performances on the afternoon.

NC State has now won four straight weekend series against the Blue Devils. The Wolfpack has won four of its past five matchups against Duke and looks to complete its first series sweep over the visitors since 2013 in Sunday's series finale.

UP NEXT
NC State closes out its series against the ninth-ranked Blue Devils on Sunday. First pitch at Doak Field at Dail Park is set for 1 p.m. and will stream live on ACC Network Extra.


https://gopack.com/news/2024/3/23/baseball-serrano-iiis-walk-off-homer-powers-pack-to-series-win-over-9-duke

Duke at North Carolina State ACC Network Extra, 1 p.m.

Wolfer79 said:

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ABSOLUTE SCENES, WALK IT OFF @eliserrano__ 😤 pic.twitter.com/dIyoUn684I

— #Pack9 ⚾️ (@NCStateBaseball) March 23, 2024

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I keep rewatching and keep getting goosebumps…that just don't get old! So pumped about all of our PACK yesterday

The hunt continues 🐺

⏰ 1 p.m.
📍 #TheDoak
🆚 Duke
📺 https://t.co/QHpReaZnk4
📻 @AJSandersPxP on @WKNC881
🎧 https://t.co/mvmfWAtkdN
📊 https://t.co/CD2VEwhj6m pic.twitter.com/3ZR88beXzM

— #Pack9 ⚾️ (@NCStateBaseball) March 24, 2024

ICYMI…how it happened last night ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/OJcHTDLn8O

— #Pack9 ⚾️ (@NCStateBaseball) March 24, 2024

Alex Gee said:

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Short leash please

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Walk 17th walk in 19+ innings
Hit batter, 5th in 19+ innings
Fielder's choice, error 3-7-5-3, run scores, runner on 3rd, batter out at first
Fly out to right, runner holds
Strike out

1-0 Duke, middle of 1

Inconsistent strike zone for both pitchers. That's got to be frustrating.

Giving up 2 out runs is a killer.

Sorry guys, I finally get to watch today and we are getting blitzed, maybe I'm the problem lol

With our left handed bats, we should be able to put a 10 spot on the board today the way this wind is blowing out.

Borowolf10 said:

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With our left handed bats, we should be able to put a 10 spot on the board today the way this wind is blowing out.

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And yet we got run ruled 13-2. Terrible day for the bull pen.

Still a big serious win. Proud of the fight in the team after last weekend.

Final from Game 3. Pack takes the series and finishes the week 3-1.#Pack9 pic.twitter.com/tScCumkowT

— #Pack9 ⚾️ (@NCStateBaseball) March 24, 2024

Feels like we got outplayed for most of this series. Very fortunate to win the series. I personally don't feel great about where we are right now. Just not seeing the arms to be successful.

The NC State baseball team dropped its series finale to No. 9 Duke 13-2 on Sunday afternoon at Doak Field at Dail Park.

Despite Sunday's setback, the Wolfpack (15-7, 5-4 ACC) notched a series victory with wins on Friday and Saturday over ninth-ranked Duke (17-7, 4-5 ACC). NC State recorded three straight one-run victories over top-15 opponents this week before the Blue Devils avoided the series sweep on Sunday.

The Blue Devils broke a 1-1 tie with four runs in the top of the fourth. Alex Stone and Zac Morris each recorded homers as Duke established a 5-1 lead. NC State's Alec Makarewicz answered Duke's four-spot in the fourth with his second solo shot of the afternoon, trimming the Pack's deficit to 5-2. Makarewicz's two-homer game was the fifth of his collegiate career and his second as a member of the Wolfpack.

Duke added to its lead with one run in the sixth and seven in the seventh to push the score to its final tally at 13-2. Duke starting pitcher Andrew Healy (2-1) earned the win after allowing just two runs over five innings pitched, recording six strikeouts with just one walk allowed.

Dominic Fritton suffered the loss and dropped to 1-2 on the season.

Makarewicz paced the Wolfpack with three hits, two runs scored, two RBI and two home runs.

UP NEXT
NC State makes a midweek road trip to Greensboro for its first road midweek matchup of the season at UNCG. Tuesday night's game is set for 6 p.m. and will be streamed live on ESPN+.

https://gopack.com/news/2024/3/24/baseball-pack9-drops-series-finale-to-9-duke